The Alberta Court of Appeal has declared that the federal government’s Impact Assessment Act remains unconstitutional. This decision, announced on Friday, highlights that despite adjustments made by Ottawa following the Supreme Court’s partial rejection of the legislation in 2023, the revised law still violates provincial authority.
This marks the second instance where Alberta contested the act, which outlines a procedure for evaluating the environmental, economic, health, and social impacts of proposed undertakings such as ports, mines, and pipelines. The Court of Appeal determined that the act enables Ottawa to halt a project within provincial jurisdiction if it even minimally affects federal interests, among other concerns.
The verdict coincides with the collaboration between Ottawa and Alberta on a new oil pipeline project destined for the West Coast. Recently, the Pacific Link pipeline initiative became the inaugural recipient of a national interest designation under Ottawa’s fresh Building Canada Act.
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